CA: Fewer females in politics

This week's Los Angeles City Beat, our alternative press, features a piece on the disturbing trend of seeing fewer female legislators getting elected to office in California.

Why?

“Term limits have been a disaster for women, because women were termed out too, but the recruitment process stayed the same,” says Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University. “By and large, it’s still men who are getting groomed and encouraged to run for office.”

One reason why this is an issue:

What sort of goals do women typically have? “Women have a sense that government should operate out in the open and be available to constituents,” Walsh says. “Women tend to be more inclusive in the way they operate and take a more progressive stand on certain issues, like civil unions, than men do. Women see themselves as the voice of the voiceless.”

Just to remind y'all, term limits is a Grover Norquist legacy item.